The British Invasion of 1964 initiated a rise in popularity of the Model 325. The Model 325C64 duplicates the Model 325 as produced in 1964-complete with semi-hollow maple body, reshaped body and headstock, 3 vintage-style single-coil pickups, Deluxe Vintage tuners, and Accent Vibrato.

For a detailed chronology of the Rickenbacker Model 325's role in the British Invasion, check out Backbeat Books' "Beatles Gear: All The Fab Four's Instruments From Stage to Studio" (SKU #H64162).

Includes hardshell case.

FEATURES

Semi-hollow maple body

21 frets

20-3/4" scale

1-5/8" nut width

Rosewood fingerboard

Dot markers

Accent Vibrato tailpiece

Set neck

3 vintage single-coil pickups

Deluxe Vintage tuners

Includes case

A thoroughly collectible guitar that is too nice not to play. Order today.

Gold Coverage goes above and beyond the manufacturer's warranty to protect your gear from unexpected breakdowns, accidental damage from handling
and failures. This plan covers your product for one, two, three or up to five years from your date of purchase, costs just pennies per day and gives you a
complete "no-worry" solution for protecting your investment.

Gold Coverage Includes:

Unexpected and unintentional spills, drops and cracks

Normal wear and tear

Power surges

Dust, internal heat and humidity

Other plan features include:

For products over $200, No Lemon Policy applies. If it fails for the same defect 3 times, it is replaced on the 4th breakdown. (Does not apply to failures due to drops, spills, and cracks)

For products under $200 experiencing the above failures, a Musician's Friend gift card will be issued for the full price of the product + tax.

There are four types of electric guitars: regular solid body (ash, alder, linden), mahogany solid body, semi-acoustic, and semi-hollow. This semi-hollow is made from a single bank of maple (normally two pieces of quarter-sawn maple glued end-to-end to prevent warping). Three sonic chambers are then hollowed out from the back, and then a slab of maple is glued to the back. One of the sonic chambers is under the bridge, and this creates a unique tone. Rickenbacker is the only company that I know of which creates guitars using this original method, but only some of their guitars are made this way. The others are mostly of the semi-acoustic class, and are also of unusual construction. Most guitarists should try all four types, so don't overlook the 325, which is of the semi-acoustic class. It has a 21-inch scale (82% of regular), so to create the same string tension as on a 25.5-inch scale, use GHS Guitar Boomers 11 15 18 26 36 50. They're non-nickle, which brings out the twangy harpsichord tone. Actually the guitar that I have, which is a 320 from 1981, is very similar to this one; the main difference is the pickup configuration. Expect it to cost more, but remember that it is made in the USA only, and that it is very unique.

First off, I am fourteen years old, but that does not make my review unhelpful. I went into a music store and I saw the Ric 325. I loved the vintage, old-style look. Plus, since I have small hands, the neck and weight was perfect for me. I plug it into a small fender amp. It sounded awesome, it played awesome, and it felt awesome. I just wanted to walk out of the store with it. I am saving my money up for this guitar.

This guitar isn't for shredders nor kids under 40. This is for us who remember John standing ever so cool playing chords on the Ed Sullivan Show.The perfect guitar to play along with Beatle records and the best looking guitar for rhythm guitarists that can get used to a short scale neck. The quality is top notch all the way and I just love mine. Playing through my AC30 brings back such fond memories of the best period in rock music. Cheers and a fab gear to all my Beatle maniac mates.

I purchased the Rickenbacker 325 after researching electric guitars for over a year. I had very high expectations about this guitar. In this fairly extensive review, I hope to touch on some important and useful aspects not covered by other reviewers. I hope that you'll conclude along with me that even with its shortcomings, the 325 is truly an amazing guitar.

If you want to outfit your 325 with strap locks, buy the strap lock buttons through the Rickenbacker website. These buttons have built-in screws that match the holes in your 325, so there's no drilling needed. Rickenbacker designed these buttons to fit Schaller strap locks, which you'll need to purchase separately. Be sure to order two buttons.

The 325 comes with medium-gauge strings. Although these strings work well for rhythm guitar, I found them too stiff for playing leads and a bit harsh on the finger tips. I put light-gauge GHS Guitar Boomers. The E string sometimes buzzed when I played the first few frets, so I had to slightly raise one side of the bridge with three turns of the Allen wrench. I recommend moving to light-gauge strings.

Comfortable feel. This enclosed semi-hollow guitar is lightweight at just under seven pounds. Further, one of the more unusual features of the 325 is it's a ¾-size guitar, both body size and neck length. The guitar's shorter scale, shorter fret widths, and narrow neck make it easier for people with shorter fingers. Indeed, the shorter size renders the 325 an ideal fit for smaller people. I have done a lot of research on shorter-scale electric guitars. Such guitars are very rare. In fact, I would submit to you that if you want a very good quality short-scale electric, this is the only new guitar on the market.

Versatile and iconic sounds. In shorter scale acoustic guitars, you end up compromising sound, but in the 325 there's no such compromise. The three pickups along with the tremolo deliver a wide-range of sounds. The single-coil pickups tend to deliver cleaner acoustics. Another unusual feature of this guitar is the pickups aren't embedded in the body of the guitar but are elevated above the guitar's body. This characteristic gives the guitar the classic 60s muffled sound.

The 325 is one of only a handful of guitars equally adept at rhythm and lead. In the Beatles' early years, John Lennon shows this guitar is great for playing driving rhythm guitar. Then John Fogerty played a similar 325 in his peak Creedence Clearwater Revival years. We can see Fogerty's Fireglow 325 in the legendary 1970 concert. Indeed, Fogerty demonstrates the 325 is also a formidable lead guitar to be reckoned with.

ConsHigh cost. The 325 is rarely discounted. The price tag for this guitar isn't for the faint at heart. The 325 is a specialty item with low demand (e .g. Beatle enthusiasts), and low supply (few of these are manufactured).

Flawed finish. The first 325 I got had a flawed textured finish along the edge of the top of the body and along one edge of the head. Musician's Friend's replacement 325's head is nice and smooth, and its body is better with lighter texturing along the same edge of the top of the body. The replacement is acceptable, but I'm a bit disappointed. Since Rickenbacker can make the rest of the finish nice and smooth, surely they can do so along these edges. I would encourage Rickenbacker to set the bar higher and do a better job.

You can't "try before you buy." There are so few of these guitars around that you can't drop by your local guitar dealer and physically try one out. So there is some increased risk here in whether you'll like the guitar.

Sensitive tuning. Because of the tailpiece design, the tuning of each impacts each other. You may find yourself going over each string a half a dozen times or more before all strings are in tune and stable. You can reduce this effect if you remove one string and replace it before going to the next string (in other words, avoid changing all strings at the same time as the instructions say). Also, I found using a narrow diameter wood dowel helps to hold the end of the string wrapped around the tailpiece as I tighten each tuner.

Less comfortable flat fret board. Curved fret boards better fit the natural shape the hand and fingers form when making bar chords.

I own the real deal version of this guitar. It is actually from 1966 and passed down to me. It is as my review title says "CLASS". Mine is the Semi Hollow body version with the Jetglo finish and has everything that it originally came with. (strap, case, pickups, everyting) I recently gave it a full tune up and wash down and still for being almost 50 years old it plays like a dream and sounds just as amazing. So I highly recomend this guitar for the real guitar players that want a great guitar that will go the distance with them, whether its your bedroom as a hobby or the stage as a pro. Forget the Gibsons get a Ric!

just an amazing guitar; give it up to the beatles to make a name for such an incredible piece.Give it up for John Lennon!!! This is a real class guitar, coming from an ultimate beatles fan who has had the pleasure of playing on one of these beautiful instruments once. im saving up money to get one of these fine guitars. The neck is really great, something about it allows your hand to slide up and down it easily.beautifully made and soundingA piece of music history- The Beatles made it famous, and i would kill to get a guitar like this.

this guitar is great. no problems ever. i have the john lennon edition of this guitar and i have a vox ac 30 like the beatles used too. sound is great. fel is great. everything about this guitar is great. one thing though its not too much of a lead guitar in my opinion. It is a short scale guitar and the frets are small so its more of a rhythm guitar. If you have the money get it.

Playing a 325 is something you just have to experience. I played my first Ric in the 1960s, but couldn't afford one. There was just something about the feel and tone that made my Vox hollowbody seem so ordinary. When I decided to buy a new guitar a year ago, I looked at several Fenders, including at the factory custom shop, Gibson, Gretsch. Nothing came close to the silky feel of the neck and fretboard. This thing rocks!

Like other RIC instruments, the quality of the craftsmanship shines through. However, some quirks with this particular model. Struggled to get it properly intonate it. The action was a bit high and lowering caused buzzing. Turned the truss rods and finally got it to an acceptable action. The bridge mount was placed too close to the fret board thus not allowing the 4th, 5th and 6th enough distance to intonate. Noticed that this plate is designed to be moved. It tends to go out of tune easily. The sound is the classic Lennon/Beatles sound. Play it through a Vox and you won't want to put it down.

This is an AMAZING sounding and looking instrument! I own several vintage instruments and this may be my favorite! I had an original years ago that was damaged in a flood. I also have the McGuinn 360 12 string and love that too BUT this guitar has some magic that can't be explained. The tone is unreal and it stands out better than most guitars. It is small in scale BUT that is not a con...I am 6'3" and I am already comfortable with it. I have the VOX PYTHOIN strap to go with it too.

I have wanted to own this guitar since childhood. This is one those guitars that you buy simply to "HAVE IT" ...not necessarily to play it. It plays well, but again...its a piece of "history" if you are a Beatles fan. Also, you have to remember that it is built on the same frame as the original and music was much different back then. The guitar is not going to give you 2008 performance but it is still a piece of history! Its like a "signed" Babe Ruth card!

If you want a cool little guitar with that 1960's vibe, this is the one.... I've had four Ric 325s and I have loved each one. The 325c64 is the replica of John Lennon's second 325. It has a great mid-range sound that I have only heard on the 325. The little 5th control knob is a little weird, a sort of blend knob, but over all a cool sound. Some might find playing lead a little difficult higher up on the short scale neck. I would suggest playing one before buying. The roller bridge is a pain sometimes, but this is period correct, so be forewarned..

I got my Rick 325 about 2 weeks ago. I wanted it mostly for playing Beatles music, as I am an avid John Lennon fan, however I was totally amazed at the overall quality of the guitar. I love it. It's a great instrument. It has a great feel, good tone, and simply looks great. It has a finish so glossy that I can see myself in it. It's s rhythm instrument - not exactly built for thrashing soloing, although I have played George Harrison solos on it. Overall - well worth the price.

I am still learning guitar, but have been a big Beatles fan. This guitar was my "holy grail", so I was happy to finally own one. The short scale takes some getting used to, but nothing beats that classic Rickenbacker tone. Highly recommended!

I own 3 guitars from Rickenbacker. 325C58, 325C64 & and a 340 12-string. All have that same wonderful great ric sound. If there was one thing I would suggest to Rickenbacker, I would ask, plead & beg them to make a series of guitars with a clear poly coat over the finish. Change a string, clean it with a cloth or accidently touch the guitar with a fingernail, and it will scratch. Tiny hairline scratches that will not come out very easily. Set up with intonation, etc. can be difficult, but once set up, they are pretty much perfect. Once again, these are not really complaints, because the pros outweigh the cons I have listed here. Overall quality of workmanship is excellent.

This guitar is worth every penny! The sound is incredible, and the feel is comfortable and sure. Before purchasing, we researched every guitar we could, and this Rickenbacker has exceeded all our expectations. The folks at Musician's Friend were very helpful and patient throughout the purchase process, answering all our questions and providing useful information. We expected a fine guitar, but this one exceeds all expectations! My son is still learning, but is now writing his own songs, and he gets whatever sounds he is looking for from this guitar - quite the versatile instrument! The 325C64 Miami C Series is truly a work of art, and one that will be played and loved for a lifetime and beyond.